Tipperary entrepreneur and ACORNS alumni Úna Ryan is on a mission with her business REMind Ed to bring mindfulness to parents, children and school communities.
We talk to rural women entrepreneurs from across Ireland who recently took part in the ACORNS 9 programme.
Acorns recently celebrated a decade of support for female entrepreneurship in rural Ireland. 57 women entrepreneurs who completed the recent programme saw their turnover increase by more than 40%.
“If health and wellbeing are embedded in a school, everyone benefits”
Women in rural Ireland with new businesses or at least with well-developed ideas are being invited to join next phase of the programme, ACORNS 10.
The ACORNS programme is designed to support early-stage female entrepreneurs living in rural Ireland through a peer learning approach. Thanks to the support of the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, and the voluntary contribution of time by Lead Entrepreneurs, there is no charge for those selected to participate.
Only early-stage female entrepreneurs living in rural Ireland, and who have had no sales before the end of June 2021, are eligible to apply.
ACORNS 10 will run from October 2024 to April 2025 and will include six monthly round table sessions, a workshop on understanding financials, a briefing by various development agencies and an end-of-cycle celebration.
REMind Ed
Úna Ryan is the owner of REMind Ed, a wellbeing company specialising in mindfulness products, events and training for parents, children and school communities.
After experiencing the fallout of the pandemic as a primary teacher and a mother, Úna felt there was a need for a simple tool that could promote wellbeing in children and adults.
“REMind Ed has rolled out a range of products and services since its formation in 2021, including Mind Moments, a series of wellbeing prompt cards that offer moments of connection, regulation and mindfulness in both homes and schools alike.”
Noting the pressures on wellbeing within school communities, Úna created wellbeing workshops for schools for both staff and children.
These have become a key focus of the business in the last 12 months.
“Among other things, the workshops teach staff strategies to support their wellbeing.
“If health and wellbeing are embedded in a school, everyone benefits,” says Úna, who has a Master’s degree in Education and is a certified Creative Mindfulness Practitioner.
Mind Moments is now stocked by Discovery Playtime, an online shop specialising in holistic and play-based products that are designed to build connection and regulate mood and behaviour.
Indeed, such is the social benefit of her work, Una has also received a research and innovation voucher from Enterprise Ireland to work with Munster Technological University to explore the further development of her brand and products.
Crediting the structure of ACORNS with helping her build belief in both herself and the business, Úna aims to spend the coming months broadening the range of stockists for Mind Movements and expanding her offering in terms of the range of workshops for schools.
She also hopes to expand her weekly classes to include new areas and offer her latest service, Play Days Wellness Camp, to new locations around Ireland.
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